Applications
Real Image Media gets US patent for ad distribution & tracking system
CHENNAI: Real Image Media Technologies (P) Ltd. announced today that the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued patent 7,353,270 B2 for the company‘s media and advertising distribution and tracking system (DATS). The Government of India had already issued patent nos. 202969 and 202980 for this system earlier. |
The patent was filed in 2001 and covers concept and technology of audio-visual playout devices that are installed at different places and media is downloaded from a central server and scheduled for playout as required. Hence, it applies to most out of home (OOH) advertising applications including signage, cinema halls, kiosks, etc., wherever advertising is distributed across multiple locations as files and centrally controlled with logs being collected and centrally consolidated. This technology is the key part of Real Image‘s OOH digital advertising solutions that are marketed under the brand name QMedia. To put it simply, this technology helps control digital advertisement and track the number of times it has been played in digital movie theaters or other solutions that use digital audio-video systems that have adopted Real Image DATS technology. |
| At present 650 cinema theaters in India and 700 worldwide are using Real Image digital playout systems and about 1000 are using chief competitor UFO Movies systems. DATS is already in use in 300 theaters as QCine digital cinema advertising and over 100 screens across shopping malls in the NCR and Jaipur as QSign digital signage in India. Real Image co-founder Senthil Kumar estimates that another 1000 theaters will convert to digital screening using Real Image solutions over the next one year. He expects 1500 to 2000 screens to adopt DATS in India during that time. Kumar is also eying the Cas and DTH market. One of the models that he is considering is permitting free or subsidized downloads of movies on the set top box hard disk if the costumer permits download and viewing of advertisements along with the movie. This will help in target advertisement. Also in the US, Kumar estimates the market for his DATS at 10,000 cinema screens over the next few years once the mandated digitization of all the screens is complete. At present around 4000 screens in the US are digitized. |
Applications
With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
